PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday departed Paris, France for South Africa where he is set to attend the Intra-African Trade Fair.
Buhari’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity Femi Adesina announced the fresh trip in a statement released earlier on Saturday.
According to Adesina, Buhari’s visit to South Africa was based on a special invitation by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Buhari will join other African leaders at the official opening ceremony of the 2nd Intra-African Trade Fair 2021 which takes place on Monday.
The event, which is holding from November 15 to November 21, is being convened by the African Export-Import Bank in collaboration with the African Union Commission and the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat.
The theme of the submit is ‘Fair, Building Bridges for a Successful African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)’.
It is aimed at boosting trade and investment across the African continent.
It also promises to create the enabling environment for businesses to thrive across the African continent by bringing to fruition the lofty ideas behind the creation of the AfCFTA.
The submit hopes to provide a platform to further identify and proffer solutions to challenges militating against intra-African trade and generate market information needed to connect buyers and sellers throughout the continent.
Adesina noted that global businesses including non-African international brands are expected to key into opportunities generated by the fair, thereby attracting for the continent trade and investment deals worth $40billion.
He said that the Nigerian president would be accompanied on the trip by the Minister of Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama and Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment Otunba Adebayo.
Others are the Director General National Intelligence Agency Ahmed Abubakar and the Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Export Promotion Council Segun Awolowo.
Buhari is expected to be back in Nigeria on Tuesday, November 16.
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